A red-and-blue figure appeared in the middle of the pitch. It was Barca's other striker, Griezmann.
The moment Li Mingyu won the ball, Griezmann sprinted forward.
To his astonishment, his off-the-ball run was almost as fast as Li Mingyu's dribble.
When he saw Li Mingyu draw the attention of three opposing defenders, he hurriedly shouted, ready to give him an option.
Griezmann's shout made the other center-back, who had been moving in to help, hesitate.
The two defenders surrounding Li Mingyu also became more alert.
Li Mingyu glanced toward the middle and saw that Griezmann really did have a good opening.
He's about to pass!
That glance alone changed the two defenders' thinking.
Li Mingyu keenly noticed that their challenges had lost some conviction. He gritted his teeth, knocked the ball forward, and forced his way between them.
Both defenders were big men, and Li Mingyu had no physical advantage against either of them.
The two had played together for years. As soon as they saw Li Mingyu's move, they knew what he was trying to do. They exchanged faint smiles and moved to close the gap with their shoulders.
At most, it would be a blocking foul. If the referee was lenient, he wouldn't even show a yellow card.
Besides, they were still about ten meters from the penalty area, off to one side. Even a free kick wouldn't pose much danger.
Griezmann watched Li Mingyu's attempt, irritation showing on his face.
The kid had no idea what he was getting himself into.
Pass the ball!
How could he be so stubborn with a ball like that?
"Li Mingyu's won it back! Beautiful!"
"That speed! There's no way they can catch him!"
"Huesca's two defenders are doubling up on Li Mingyu!"
"Griezmann's made his run! Li Mingyu should pass!"
"What? He hasn't passed! He's trying to force his way through!"
"Oh no, they're going to use their bodies to stop him!"
"What a shame! Li Mingyu should've passed!"
"My God, what am I seeing?"
"Li Mingyu's forced his way right between the two defenders!"
"The Alien! He's The Alien!"
"Ronaldo pulled off something like that back in the day!"
The commentators all clutched their heads, staring at the scene on the pitch in disbelief.
Huesca's two defenders had nearly brought their shoulders together, but Li Mingyu charged straight through the gap like a Wuling God Car.
The defenders stumbled and slid to the ground.
But to everyone watching, Li Mingyu had knocked the ball forward, bowled both men over, and dribbled past them.
Brute-force brilliance.
This was football's brute-force brilliance!
The Camp Nou crowd felt like they were about to lose their minds.
Some longtime fans couldn't help tearing up. Their very own Alien had returned!
One Pendulum Dribble and one powerful burst past the defenders had transported everyone back thirty years, to La Liga and the memory of that unstoppable Alien.
This time, goalkeeper Fernandez charged out with great caution. Getting wrong-footed once wasn't embarrassing, but if it happened again, he'd become a laughingstock.
So Fernandez kept his center of gravity very low, staring fixedly at the ball at Li Mingyu's feet.
But this time, Li Mingyu didn't use the Pendulum Dribble. He gently chipped the ball, sending it in a beautiful arc over the despairing Fernandez and into the goal.
Fernandez helplessly reached out, but it was no use. He could only drop to his knees and watch the ball land in the net.
A figure rushed past him, scooped up the ball, and ran out of the penalty area.
Watching Li Mingyu's retreating figure, Fernandez felt a deep sense of fear.
Griezmann beamed and smacked Li Mingyu hard on the shoulder, then ran back with him.
"Haha, Li, that was incredible! I thought they were going to stop you!"
All the Barca players surrounded Li Mingyu, treating him like the center of attention.
Messi had just returned to the locker room when he heard the thunderous applause. He glanced at the TV and saw Li Mingyu running back with the ball, his eyes widening in surprise. In the time it had taken him to leave the pitch and reach the locker room, Barca had scored twice and equalized.
Looking at Li Mingyu surrounded by the others, the smile gradually faded from Messi's face. His deep eyes held a hint of something inscrutable.
After Li Mingyu scored, head coach Koeman was so excited that he slid across the ground on his knees, celebrating wildly.
The coach's inspired substitution! The player comes on and scores twice to equalize!
Koeman had already settled on tomorrow's newspaper headline.
Li Mingyu escaped everyone's enthusiastic pats on the head, back, and butt, hurriedly placed the ball on the center spot, and stood on the halfway line like a tiger straining at the gate.
Li Mingyu's two goals had completely set Camp Nou alight.
Some fans had already been preparing to leave, but Li Mingyu's commanding performance sent them dutifully back to their seats, where they began shouting their support for the team.
Camp Nou, alive again, unleashed an immense wave of energy.
The Huesca players, after conceding two goals in a row to Li Mingyu, were completely stunned.
They looked at Li Mingyu like an innocent girl facing a big bad wolf.
That was especially true of Garcia, the midfield mainstay whom Li Mingyu had robbed twice.
Watching Li Mingyu brimming with fighting spirit, Garcia felt his legs go weak.
His ghostlike speed, his uncanny steals...
Looking at Li Mingyu, Garcia felt as though he'd developed a psychological shadow.
The whistle blew, and Li Mingyu really did burst forward like a racehorse released from the starting gate, speeding toward the ball at his opponent's feet.
Hey! Why's he running straight at me?
Garcia was puzzled.
But his Huesca teammates were about to lose their minds.
Spacing out in the middle of a match?
Garcia had just been dispossessed twice, but he was the heart of the team. After kickoff, they still needed to get him the ball so he could organize the attack.
Who could've guessed Garcia would lose focus? When the ball was played to him, his eyes were on Li Mingyu.
By the time Garcia reacted, Li Mingyu had already stuck out a foot and taken the ball right in front of him.
Garcia felt all the blood in his body rush to his head. His eyes turned red.
You can't bully someone like this!
The rookie author is going around in circles begging for votes!
Before you continue